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Children: Our Best Investments

Childhood offers a brief opportunity for parents and children to share intimate moments of love and respect. Time well-spent with one's child is an investment for the future.

Silas Shotwell, in the September 1987 issue of Homemade, related an incident recorded in the diary of of Charles Francis Adams, a nineteenth- century political figure and diplomat. One day Adams wrote in his diary: "Went fishing with my son today -- a day wasted." His son, Brook Adams, also kept a diary, which is still in existence. On that same day, Brook Adams made this entry: "Went fishing with my father - the most wonderful day of my life!"

The father thought he was wasting his time while fishing with his son, but his son saw it as an investment of time.

So, what is a child?

Fruit of marriage. Married couple who love each other welcome the arrival of the fruit of their becoming one flesh.

Miracle of conception. Not all wives are capable of conceiving. The Bible calls of the sexual union of the couple as intimate knowing. Through this avenue, they can bear a child that will add joy to their relationship.

Bonding factor in marital affair. A child can either enhance and deepen the marriage relationship or become a headache to his or her parents. He or she is an antidote against a couple's selfishness and self - centeredness. He or she is the cement that glues marital bonding.

Mentor in parenting. Couples can never learn the lessons of parenting without a child mentoring them.

Common grownup complains:

Grownups make promises then they forget all about them, or else they say it wasn't really a promise, just a maybe.

Grownups don't do the things they're always telling the children to do -- like pick up their things, or be neat, or always tell the truth.

Grownups never really listen to what children have to say. They always decide ahead of time what they're going to answer.

Grownups make mistakes, but they won't admit them. They always pretend that they weren't mistake at all -- or that somebody else made them.

Grownups interrupt children all the time and think nothing of it. If a child interrupts a grownup, he or she gets a scolding or something worse.

Grownups never understand how much children want a certain thing -- a certain color, shape or size. If it's something they don't admire -- even if the children have spent their own money for it -- they always say, "I can't imagine what you want with that old thing!"

Sometime grownups punish children unfairly. It isn't right if you've done just some little thing wrong and grownups take away something that means an awful lot to you. Other times you can do something really bad and they say they're going to punish yo, but they don't. You never know, and you ought to know.

Grownups are always talking about what they did and what they knew when they were 10 years old -- but they never try to think what it's like to be 10 years old right now.

Let us listen to our children. There is wisdom in their sincere complaints and innocent wishes. Let us also spend quality time with them. Let us leave them beautiful memories to remind them how much we love them. Let us also find the time to train them in the way of the Lord. After all, they are our best investments.